Public Hearings

The Local Government Act provides opportunity for property owners to change the OCP or zoning designations on their properties by applying for an amendment through the local governing municipality.

Public Hearings are held to provide a platform for public comment on such proposed amendments. The City of West Kelowna schedules Public Hearings after the first reading of the proposed amendment bylaw has been given, and Council has authorized proceeding to a Public Hearing.

In your community, ads are published in local newspapers on Wednesdays and can be reviewed on our Public Notices webpage.

Official Community Plan and Zoning Bylaws

The Official Community Plan (OCP) Bylaw is the long-term vision and consolidation of Council’s policies and objectives for land use, community well being and the form and character of development. Property owners can apply to amend land use designations within the Official Community Plan to permit uses not allowed under the current designation.

The Zoning Bylaw guides land use by regulating the permitted use and density of land and siting, size and dimensions of structures. A zoning amendment or “rezoning” is the process of changing the zoning to allow use of the land not permitted under the current zoning.

An OCP and zoning amendment can be considered simultaneously.

Public Hearing Process

Public hearings are generally conducted in the following format:

When possible, Public Hearings are broadcast live via webcast and all webcasts are provided for viewing after the meeting on the city's website;
At the beginning of the Public Hearing the proposed amendment(s) are introduced;
The Mayor will then call for speakers and will facilitate the speaker's list;
Each interested person will be given an opportunity to speak to Council on the application;
Speakers are asked to provide their name and address for the record; and,
After all speakers have been heard, the Mayor will call 3 times for speakers to come forward; if there are none, the Public Hearing on that item is closed.

Public Hearings have limited seating, available on a first-come, first-service basis; alternatively, the City will provide opportunity for the public to speak by phone and are encouraging the public to watch via live stream at westkelownacity.ca/webcasts.

After the Public Hearing

When deliberating the third reading of a bylaw, Council takes into consideration information received at the Public Hearing, information submitted prior to the Public Hearing and relevant city policies and objectives.

Examples of information can include input from members of the community, submissions from the applicant and / or the applicant's consultants, stakeholders' submissions and reports from city staff.

Note: After the Public Hearing is concluded, Council cannot receive or consider any submissions or new information from the applicant or public regarding the application.

If a submission is received after the Public Hearing, it will be provided to the Planning Department for information but will not be circulated to Council.

Public Notification

The City of West Kelowna, in accordance with the Local Government Act, notifies the public of upcoming Public Hearings by:

Where required, mailing notifications to property owners and tenants in occupation within 100 metres of the subject property.
Advertising in a print newspaper distributed within the boundaries of the City of West Kelowna.
Posting electronically on the City of West Kelowna website.
- View our Public Notices

Copies of the bylaw and related materials may be viewed online at westkelownacity.ca/councilcommittee.

How to Make a Submission

All submissions must be made Attn: Corporate Officer, File Number and must include your name and address by 4:00 p.m. on the Monday before the Public Hearing is held. Written submission can be provided to Council in advance of the scheduled public hearing date via:

Mail – Address your submission to Corporate Officer, City of West Kelowna City Hall, 3731 Old Okanagan Highway, West Kelowna, BC, V4T 0G7
Email – Send your submission to submissions@westkelownacity.ca
In-person - Leaving your submission with reception or in the dropbox outside the main doors of the City Hall,
3731 Old Okanagan Highway, West Kelowna, BC, V4T 0G7

Any written submissions received before 4:00 p.m. on the Monday before the Council Meeting will be provided to Council as part of the publicly posted Agenda. All submissions received before the close of the Public Hearing are provided to Council and become part of the public record.

Note: Council cannot receive submissions after the conclusion of the Public Hearing.

Due to limited seating, the City will be providing participation by phone as follows:

To register to speak at the Public Hearing, please phone Legislative Services at 778-797-2250 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.
Once registered, you will be contacted by phone during the Public Hearing to be provided your opportunity to address Council. Please note that staff will not be in a position to provide you with a specific time-slot, so we are asking participants to be available to address Council by phone for the duration of the Public Hearing.

If you did not pre-register and wish to participate in the Public Hearing, please phone 778-797-2250 during the Public Hearing to be added to the list.

Submission Deadlines

Submissions made in advance of the Public Hearing must be received by 4:00 p.m. on the business day prior to the public hearing. Any correspondence or written submission received after this deadline will not be circulated to Council, however may be presented at the Public Hearing by the person making the submission or their representative. Correspondence received after the 4:00 p.m. deadline may be included in the Public Hearing Binder and the name(s) of the individual submitting correspondence may be included in the minutes of the Public Hearing.

Note: Correspondence received prior to 1st and 2nd readings of the bylaw amendment and authorized to proceed to public hearing does not form part of the public hearing record, but is retained within the application file. Please re-submit your comments if necessary.

Agenda and Minutes

The agenda for an upcoming Public Hearing will be posted under the Council Meeting occurring on the same date.

The agenda will be posted on or about 12 p.m. on the Friday preceding the date of the proceedings, and remain posted until the conclusion of the Public Hearing:

View the Public Hearing Agenda

Draft (unofficial) minutes can be viewed under the Agenda of the next regular Council Meeting that follows the date of the Public Hearing. Agendas are posted on or about 12 p.m. on the Friday preceding the scheduled meeting.

View the Regular Council Meeting calendar

If you are having trouble finding the minutes of a public hearing, or if you require an official copy of the minutes (that is those minutes that Council has adopted) please contact Legislative Services at 778-797-2250. Fees will apply for copying and/or processing of official minutes.